Title: Thats Where Love Will Be
Author: Di de dur! (Me!)
Summary: Angel and Tom's daughter must go through the pain and hassle of her freshman year at highschool. She's facing homophobes that bag on her parents, coming out of the closest, friends, and fights, and maybe a helping of true love? Meanwhile: Mark struggles with coming to grips with the fact that he may not be the same person he was when he was dating Muaren. Mimi and Roger prepare to bring a new life into the world, how will the rest of the BoHo's respond? Maureen and Joanne take on the task of rson. Angel/Collins, Mimi/Roger, Mark/OC, MoJo, and of course Ashlynn and who ever I decide towrite for her.
Rating: T
Fandom: RENT
Disclaimer: I own Ashlynn, Leah, Alicia, Miguel, but no one else. I mean I guess I own the three big guys, but I don't really want to you know? I own Billy too, but I hate him so it dosent count.
Authors notes: This chapter (and quite possibly the one after this one) was co written by this amazing author, Broadwaybaby4205. She is absoulutely amazing, and I think you should all give my Broadway-chica a big hand! (OH and I forgot to mention that 'Licia's a cop. Oops.)
The Loft, Tom's POV
I groaned and rubbed my hand. My daughter and soon to be wife were out god-knows-where, doing god-knows-what.
Flashback, Life Cafe, Tom's POV
"I would like to propose a toast", Maureen announced, rising to her feet and clanking her fork against her beer bottle.
"This cannot end well," I muttered to Angel as she stifled a giggle.
"To Collins and Angel!" she announced before promptly flashing the audience and taking a giant gulp of beer.
"Thanks, Mo. Really, we needed that", Roger dryly remarked.
"You know it", she smirked.
"So, Ang, you pumped up for our girl's night tonight?" Mimi inquired with a devilish smirk.
"You know it", Angel responded, eyeing me as I grimaced slightly.
"Please tell me said girl's night will not include male strippers", I groaned, wincing slightly.
"Oh, yes. The steamiest of 'em", Mimi teased, "Kink Club here we come! They have girls there for Mo, Jo, Ash, and Leah's entertainment
too". Leah looked slightly scared at the prospect, and instantlly looked at Ashlynn for guidence. Ashlynn just smiled.
"You had better be being sarcastic", I demanded.
"You will never find out", Angel smirked, resulting in a giggle from Mimi.
"I really wanna know what they're doing man", I lamented to Roger. The conversation had been going on for thirty minutes.
"Dude, so do I", Roger concurred.
"Dude, can we stop this conversation?" Mark suggested.
"Here here", Miguel agreed, "Seriously, you guys have been bicthing about the same topic for hours. Just go out and do some bachelor party type thing".
"No, I won't be able to have fun. Too much stress", I muttered in response, keeping my eyes on the wall, a concerned crossing my face.
"Mimi wouldn't really be at a strip club", Roger mused.
"She works at one", Mark pointed out.
"Used to. We have a baby now", Roger continued, "She wouldn't cheat on me when we have a newborn baby would she?"
"Roger! Stop!" Mark hollered, "If she is at a strip club she will not cheat on you!"
"You never know", Roger muttered.
Schunard-Collins Residence. Ashlynn's POV
I watched my mother throw back another shot and looked from Leah, to Mimi, to my aunt Maureen, who was absolutely smashed, to Joanne, then to the youngest Bohemians, alseep laying side by side in a porta crib. I lounged back and watched my family. Marveled at how much I loved them.
"Mom, you are going to have a wicked bad ass hangover tomorrow. It's going to suck saying your vows with a headaches. Haha." I said loudly. She threw a handful of popcorn at me.
"You had better be glad you're sixteen, or I would't be letting you drink Kiddo." Mom smiled at me and set her empty shot glass down.Which translated into, 'You better be glad I'm drinking so much, or you wouldn't be.' I smiled and shook my head. We had started off by doing everyone's nails the same, except mom's, we french tipped hers. My sparkly pink nail polish glistened as I draped a careless arm around Leah. Leah tipped her long neck beer bottle, and I touched mine too it gently. We smiled and threw our heads back, pressing the bottle sinto our lips and chugging, while my mom and aunt Mimi laughed.
"OOOOH! Let's play I've never!" Aunt Maureen suggested. I groaned and tried to crawl away, definately not something I wante dto play with my mom, but Leah grabbed me. Our floor was covered with every blanket in the whole house, and the three couches and chair had formed a kind of cirley-squarish thingy, with an open end, so we were in like... a nest. It was really comfortable.
"Whatever..." I moaned. I grabbed two more beers for me and Leah, and watched as the rest grabbed one too.
Maureen isntantly took control. "Changing the rules, the firt one to finish is the slut, okay? Basically, when yo make a statement, anyone who has done it has to take a drink." She smiled. "Okay cool. Pookie, you can start."
"I've never kissed a boy." Mimi, Leah, Mom, and Maureen too a drink. Joanne threw me a look and I hit her a highfive. "Platinum lesbians! You go girl!"
Uh, oh, Mom's turn. "I've never kissed a girl!" Everyone took a sip then.
"Aunt Mimi!" She turned to me. My eyes flashed, as if to ask who.
"Oh, yeah... Maureen."
"Anyways, ignoring that!" THe game lasted a long time, and Mom was dubbed the sluttiest of all of us. We turned on a ovie and set the TV on the floor so we could lay there and watch. Just talking, it was nice the six of us gir;s hanging out.
We got into this massive pillow fight around midnight, and that lasted a good hour.
I looked back at my bedroom, where My Maid of Honor dress was hanging out, and Mimi and Leah's bridesmaid dresses as well. I got up when I heard a knock on the door and fell down to the gorund with a thump. I hadn't realized how much I had had to drink. Leah kissed me and we watched as mom got up to get the door. Alicia stood there in full uniform, and a sobering wave of emotion crashed over us all.
Schunard-Collins residence, Angel's POV.
It was weird seeing Alicia at my house, not that she hadn't been invited, just that she had to work. I felt this sobering wave of unease crash down on me.
"'Lis, what hapened? Who's hurt." Ashlynn stood up, with the combined efforts of Mimi and Leah, and walked over to me. No, not Thomas, please. Oh God, don't say something's happened to Tom. Oh God no. "Is it my Dad, what's going on Alicia?!" Ashlynn placed an arm around me and I stared at Alicia, who seemed to be in a loss for words.
"No, it's not what you're think Angel, nothing is physically wrong with Collins." Alicia just kept staring at me. "Mark and Miguel were on their way to the hospital... Miguel ate something at the Life earlier that didnt agree with him, and a truck hit their taxi... Mark is okay, but I left the hospital to come and tell you guys. You unplugged your phone, and neither of the other guys wanted to leave. I think Mi is alright, he's got a slight concussin and a broken leg. But that's it. I'm sorry if I overly worried you, but Collin's wanted me to tell you not to come, he didn't want to see you until you were dressed in white and walking down the isle o say I do." Alicia smiled at the last little bit and I threw my arms around her.
"I'm sorry if I worried you, its just, Miguel is my brother and I was the first oficer on the scene, I'm just a little tired, I guess I need to go home, have a strong drink and get ready for the wedding tomorrow." I laughed and lead her into the apartment, locking the door.
"I'm sure Ash has some Pjay's that'll fit you, so you just stay your little butt here with the rest of us girls, okay?" My happy demeanor had returned as soon as Alicia confirmed I was still getting married the next day, and that Mark and Miguel were okay. Ashlynn dissapeared into her rom and cam eout later with a pair of boyshorts, almost identical to the ones she was wearing and one of her trade mark cami's. Alicia nodded her thanks and headed to the bathroom to change. I looked down at myself, smilling.
Ashlynn had started dressing in boyshorts underwear when she was nine or ten, she had seen me in them around the house, (and I still wore them constantly, the light blue pair I had on then are my favorite.) I smiled. Mimi was wearing an overly large Led Zeppelin tshirt, that barely reached her hips, and a pair of white underware. I shook my head, she was on the verge of passing out with her head on Maureen's shoulder. The diva in question was pulling on her half-shirt. I rolled my eyes, the shirt cut off right underneath her brests, there was no way it was going down any further.
I rolled my eyes again. Ashlynn and Leah were sitting against the chair, holding each other, weraing identical pajama's; a too-small white cami, and vibrantly colored purple boyshorts. (All Ash wore, besides thongs) Joanne was quite obviously the most conservative of all of us. wearing sweats and a cami. Alicia sat down between Mimi and I, and grabbed a beer. Ashlynn and Leah were drifting into sleep, and Joanne was already out like a light, with her head in Maureen's lap. I touched Mimi's shoulder and she curled up on her side and quickly fell asleep.
Everyone drifted off into slumber, until I was the ony one left wake, staring at the ceiling. I looked at the clock, it read two thirty am, so there was only twelve hours until the wedding. Tom and I don't have anything, except Ashlynn, so really nothing will change, just the state will recognize us as a legally married couple. I mean, after we say 'I do' the only thiing that would change would be my last name. I would just gain one. Collins. I knew that, so why was I so fucking nervous?
The Loft, Tom's POV
Fuck I was nervous. After tomorrow Angel would be my spouse. I smiled at the thought, but still had that tingly troubled feeling. I still felt like I was dragging Angel deeper into this unaccpeting society, and I defiantely didn't want her to be hurt like that I was at the final legalization, and me and three other NYU professors had to be escorted out by the police, that's how bad the protesters were. I laughed a little bit as Mark wheeled his hungover lover into the loft.
"Miguel, man you look like shit" I muttered, emphisizing the word. Mark rubbed his eye in an attempt at scraping away the bruise I assume. "So do you Mark." I rolled my eyes and flopped down on the couch. Roger was my best man, Mark was a groomsman, and so was Miguel. Eric was our ring bearer and Isabella was our flower girl, it was qute funny actuall, because now that Eric coud walk on his own, Mo was going to carry our flower girl down the aisle, holding our ring bearers hand. I could vividly picture it inmy head.
"Go to hell Thomas." Miguel muttered, I rolled my eyes again. His whole leg, hip to toe was in a cast, it really wasn't funny. But really, I was too wasted to not find it funny. I chuckled.
"Man, you should have just stayed here. Marky was just fretting." I joked, all he was doing was throwing up. He had drank to much was all, but Mark got all concerned and decided that they needed to rush to the ER, now one of my groomsmen had a black eye and four stiches above that eye, and the other was in a wheelchair.
"Fuck you Collins." Roger laughed with me, and I plopped myself down on the couch. I kicked my shoes off and leaned back against hte back of the dingy old couch and closed my eyes.
"You aren't my type Mark." I opened my eyes to see this appaled expression on Mark's face, which slowly turned into a smirk. He spun around, like he was doing a strip tease and twirled his everpresant scarf around my face.
"Come on man, who wouldn't want to get with this." Obviously the boy was still drunk. He licked his finger and touched his right nipple, hissing. I rolled my eyes.
"Who would?" Miguel gaped at me and wheeled himself over to Mark, pulling the stunned filmmaker down onto his lap.
"Uh - ME!" I laughed at the look on Miguel's face. Suddenly, it all seemed clear to me and my face went blank. I loved Angel more than anything else in the world. He was the love of my life, the only person I would ever love, the only person I have ever loved. It didn't matter weather or not we got married, or we just simply stayed the way we were. All we were doing tomorrow was proclaiming our love in front of a bunch of people, and re-making vows that we had made a long time ago. We were doing this because we wanted people to know.
"Uh, Tom? Are you okay?" I nodded and smiled.
"I'm doing the right thing." and I was, I could feel it.
